Consequences
by Anya Fira
Summary: Elissa Cousland learns the consequences of all her choices, good and bad.
1. Surprises

**Disclaimer: Bioware owns everything**

_Chapter 1: Surprises_

A cool breeze blew over Elissa as she stood outside the forest. Wanting to escape from all of the commotion at the keep, she had gone for a walk that she hoped would keep her thoughts from other, less pleasant things. Like how many people had died at the keep when she chose to save Amaranthine, though she had less trouble with that since she firmly believed more people would have died if she had chosen differently. Then there was the fact that people had already died during the Joining in her short time as Warden Commander, and if their faces were already haunting her dreams how many more people could she submit to that?

Unfortunately, all of those things had been occupying her mind since five minutes after she left the keep.

"Well, there's no one around to hear me, so I think I'll just start talking to myself to distract me. Not that me rambling on to myself isn't weird or possibly bordering on insanity. I should have brought Ivan along. Yes, that dog would have been good company. Or I could have taken Ser Pounce-A-Lot along and spent the whole time anticipating what Anders would look like when I returned. My guess is he would look like a crazy cat lady with his ponytail coming out, a wild look in his eyes, and-"

"Have you taken up tree-whispering since leaving Denerim, my dear? Personally, I've always wanted to try that, and with an expert such as yourself to teach me I think I'd be pretty good at it."

Elissa whirled around, a look of pure joy on her face. "Alistair!" she cried, throwing herself into his arms. "I thought you weren't going to arrive for another two weeks!"

"I knew you wouldn't mind, so I decided to come early and surprise you. It worked rather well, considering how loud I am when I try to be sneaky. I'll just have to only sneak up on you when you're talking to trees. Umm... what was that about, anyway?"

Elissa sighed deeply. "It's a long story..." She told Alistair everything that had happened at the keep since she had arrived. At the end he only stared ahead in silence. As the minutes dragged on Elissa began to worry that he disapproved of the choices she had made. She had been so sure he would have agreed with her regarding saving the people of Amaranthine and killing the Alchemist, or at least understand her decisions. It took all of her self-control to refrain from screaming at Alistair to tell her what he was thinking. Finally he spoke.

"Wow. I can't believe I let you come here all alone. If something had happened to you... I'm just happy you're safe."

Relief flooded through Elissa's body. Of course Alistair wouldn't blame her. He never had before, why would he now? "Me too. Come on, let's head back to the keep. I'll show you what repairs we're doing."

Upon reentering Vigil's Keep, Elissa couldn't help but be proud of what had been accomplished in the week since the darkspawn attack. The walls and the area immediately within them had suffered the most damage, but they were already halfway done thanks to the dwarves in charge of construction.

"Hey Warden!" a voice yelled from across the courtyard. Oghren ran up to Elissa, his face red with rage. "Those sodding bastards in the kitchen won't give me any more ale!"

Elissa placed a hand on her hip and let the other cover the small smile that was beginning to form in a vain attempt to hide her amusement.

"You think this is funny? I'm about ready to go into a berserker rage and you're laughing? Get those sodding fools to give me my drink!"

"Is the thought of no drink really enough to send you into a berserker rage? As a Grey Warden you may want to exercise a tiny bit more control than that," Elissa commented wryly. She knew that she should really get Oghren a drink, but at the moment he was just too entertaining.

"Wait, Oghren's a Grey Warden?" Alistair asked, obviously stunned.

"Don't look so surprised, pike-twirler. The warrior caste of Orzammar are some of the best," Oghren replied, puffing out his chest with pride.

Laughing, Elissa said, "Don't worry, Oghren. I'll speak with the kitchen staff about your need to be constantly inebriated." Oghren muttered his thanks along with some curses at those working in the kitchen and went back to the fort.

Elissa turned to Alistair, who still wore the stunned expression he had when he learned of his new brother in arms. "You know, my old nan always told me if I Ieft my face in a funny expression for too long it would freeze that way."

"Heeey! People would kill for my face even if it was frozen into something resembling a darkspawn."

Chuckling, Elissa replied, "Is that what they told you in the chantry?"

"No, in the chantry they told me that I would never amount to anything. It's obvious they were just jealous."

The last comment combined with the self-assured look on Alistair's face and the happiness having him around again brought her was enough to send Elissa into a laughing attack. "It's... not even... that... funny..." she managed to get out between spurts of laughter.

"I have that weird feeling that comes when you're not sure if someone just insulted you or not," Alistair responded with a cocked eyebrow.

"Not... meant to... insult..." Elissa gasped, finally beginning to catch her breath.

"Are you okay to go inside?" Alistair asked.

"Yeah, let's go. That should be my last crazy person action of the day. Should be anyway..."As they entered the keep the aroma of dinner wafted towards them. Elissa's stomach rumbled loudly. "Maybe we should head to the dining hall," she suggested.

"Your stomach and I couldn't agree more," replied Alistair, and the couple headed down the hall. After arriving they took a seat next to Oghren, who was still sulking.

"Shoot, I forgot to talk to the cook," Elissa murmured. She excused herself, leaving Alistair alone with the wrath of Oghren in withdrawal. After a fight with the cook about how much money they should be wiling to spend on alcohol, she returned with a tankard of ale to find an uncomfortable looking Alistair and Oghren with his battleaxe drawn. "Whoa! What's going on over here?" she exclaimed as she rushed to their spot in the room.

"This filthy nug-humper was stealing my food!" yelled Oghren.

"Did not! My hands were nowhere near his plate when he pulled out his axe and demanded that I fight him like a real man for his food," Alistair retorted.

He said that a little guiltily, Elissa noted. "Oghren get over here and drink some ale!" she yelled, and slammed down the cup for emphasis, causing the drink to slosh up and over the sides. Immediately Oghren put his battleaxe away and sat back down in his seat, then grabbed the ale and started drinking.

"Did you take his food?" Elissa asked Alistair after she had sat down.

Alistair looked guiltily at his hands. "I asked him if he was going to eat his chicken leg. He mumbled something that sounded like a yes to me, but as soon as I lifted my hand he accused me of trying to steal his food!" he said in disbelief.

"Well, you did try and take food from a Grey Warden. What would you have done? Especially if you were suffering from withdrawal."

"Hmm, I see your point. It's good to be around people that eat as much as I do, though. In Denerim some of the nobility had been giving me nasty looks around mealtime."

Elissa's thoughts wandered back to when her family would entertain visiting nobility in Highever. They always at least had the decency to be polite to her face. The worst she had experienced was poor attempts to hide their surprise when a noble learned that she practiced using daggers and a bow daily with Ser Gilmore. Elissa knew that some of the nobles had brought their concerns about that to her parents since they were the ones that allowed her to spend time that way. What the other nobles had to say about her Elissa learned from the castle staff. According to a former maid, one noble's daughter described her as "a crazy freak that should learn to focus on what was proper". That was definitely among the nicer things people had said.

"There's definitely no need to worry about that here. We all eat like starving pigs," Elissa finally responded to Alistair.

"Thank the Maker!" Alistair cried. The two then continued with their meal.

Just as Alistair was getting up to get thirds, a messenger ran over to Elissa. "For the Warden Commander," the young man said. Elissa took the envelope the man handed her and opened it. As she read the contents her face grew pale.

"What is it?" Alistair asked worriedly.

"The Grey Wardens in Weisshaupt want to know how we survived killing the Archdemon. They've already left and will arrive in Denerim within a week. We're to meet them there." Elissa wondered if everyone could hear the distress in her voice.

Alistair reached for the letter and Elissa gave it to him, glad she wasn't alone in this. "Well," he said after reading the letter. "I guess we should leave in the morning."

"Yeah, I guess we should," Elissa murmured.


	2. On the Road Again

Chapter 2: On the Road Again

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The next morning found Elissa fighting to keep her eyes shut against the light streaming in. She feels so safe in bed with Alistair's arm around her. Safety is something she hadn't had the luxury of feeling in a long time. Alistair began to stir beside her, and she latched on to his arm in the hopes that he might get the message to let them both sleep for a few more minutes. Elissa happily noticed that he did indeed get the message, and she wiggled deeper underneath the covers and towards Alistair.

Letting her mind wander, she began to ponder the things the Wardens from Weisshaupt might ask her and Alistair. Obviously, they would want to know how she had survived killing the Archdemon. After Anora's coronation and her official thanks to the Grey Wardens, Elissa recalled Alistair asking her what she thought they should tell them. _Why not the truth?_ she had replied, too happy at the time to realize the implications of that. Now that she is taking the time to think about it, she definitely agrees with Alistair. It might not be the best idea to tell the Wardens about an ancient ritual involving blood magic, sex, and a woman now running around with the soul of an Old God in her pregnant belly. Then again, the Grey Wardens have always said to do whatever it takes. If nothing else, telling the truth is at least something to think about.

Elissa's thoughts were interrupted when a blanket was suddenly pulled off of her, allowing cool air to envelop her. "Hey!" she shouted while curling into the fetal position in an attempt to conserve her warmth.

"If there is anything I learned while in Denerim, it is that sleeping in is a dangerous thing," Elissa heard Alistair reply from across the room.

"And why is that ?" she asked as she curled into an even tighter ball.

"Because people have schedules. For themselves for their guests, for their dogs. It's a little ridiculous. Surprisingly enough, talking to me was a favorite thing for people to fit into their schedule. I think they just wanted to be able to say they spoke with Maric's bastard son," he says a little bitterly.

His tone of voice causes Elissa to finally sit up. She surveyed Alistair and thought about how much more self-confidence he has compared to when they first met. Despite that, he still refused to believe anyone other than his friends and fellow Grey Wardens would want to see him for some other reason than who his father was. "Or maybe they want to get to know you better. You _are_one of the people that saved Ferelden. They admire you for that," she told him.

"You have a point," Alistair replied slowly. "I guess I shouldn't assume the worst."

"Well they are nobles. It would almost be wrong not to assume the worst of them," Elissa said in a very matter-of-fact tone.

Laughing, Alistair replied, "You would know, right?"

"I certainly wasn't like that!" she cried in mock astonishment. In a more serious voice, she continues, "I was probably one of the friendlier nobles. Also one of the most spoiled. I could always get my way with my parents..." A sad smile plays across Elissa's lips at the memory of her parents. She has never dealt with the grief from their murder, and she doesn't want to until she finds time to visit Fergus in Highever. Thankfully Alistair hasn't pushed her to talk about it like she pushed him to talk about Duncan. However, she had a feeling from the look on his face at her reaction to talking about her parents that that might change soon.

"Since there's no chance of going back to sleep now, I might as well get dressed," Elissa said a little too brightly. She hopped out of bed and walked over to the dresser, grabbed a linen shirt, leggings, and a pair of boots, and got dressed. Elissa took a moment to look in the mirror and marvel at how much her view of herself has changed. A year and a half ago she would have been appalled at the idea of wearing these clothes outside of training. Before putting her bronze hair up in a bun she would have lamented that it was a little wavy rather than curly or perfectly straight, depending on the day. Now she could care less.

"So who were you planning on leaving in charge while we're gone?" Alistair asked.

"Umm... I was thinking Oghren would be a good choice. After all, he was going to be a military general before he decided to be a Grey Warden."

"I see what you're saying, but are you sure that we shouldn't be worried about how drunk he might get, especially after last night?"

"Yeah, don't worry about it. I considered leaving Nathaniel Howe in charge but I decided that I want to take him and Anders with us, to show that we've gotten some good new recruits. I'm sure people will find fault with both of them, but they're better than presenting Oghren to the Wardens from Weisshaupt."

"Aha! I should have known you had a diabolical plan worked out for this!" Alistair exclaimed, then added, "It's one of the things I love about you."

"My devious mind?"

"Of course!" he laughed, and pulled Elissa towards him for a kiss. The kiss was slower and less urgent than many of the ones they had shared during the Blight, when they had been afraid each one would be their last. Being slower allowed the kiss to be deeper, and Elissa decided she could definitely get used to being kissed like this. Reluctantly, she pulled away.

"We should probably start getting ready to leave for Denerim," she sighed.

"Unfortunately, you're right. Have you told Oghren, Anders, and Nathaniel your plans for them yet?"

"No. Let's go down to breakfast and tell them."

Shortly after leaving their room, they met Anders in the hallway. He said he would be packed shortly, and left giving Alistair a suspicious look.

"I get the feeling that I worry him," Alistair said to Elissa.

"Maybe he can just tell you're a templar. After escaping the Circle so many times he might have had so many encounters with them he can just tell. That's the best I can come up with anyway."

At that moment they walked into the dining hall, and Elissa spotted Oghren and Nathaniel sitting across from each other, which surprised her considering Nathaniel's brooding nature and Oghren's abrasiveness. She told them both what she wanted from them, and Nathaniel left to pack immediately, seeming glad for the excuse to get away.

"You can trust me Warden. I'll take good care of this place," Oghren assured Elissa. It has the opposite effect since his speech is slightly slurred. Alistair shot her a glance that said _Are you sure?_ and she nodded. At this point it would just be cruel to Oghren to take the responsibility away.

Elissa and Alistair begin eating, but Elissa soon found that she could barely chew anything despite her usually ravenous appetite. At the moment her throat feels thick, and she can barely swallow. Eventually she resorts to just pushing her food around on her plate so that she has something to do.

"What's wrong?" Alistair asked through a mouthful of food.

"I... don't know. I just can't eat. Maybe I'm stressed or something."

"Then you should eat. If you don't you'll get cranky, and then everyone else will be stressed form trying to avoid your temper."

Elissa opened her mouth to protest, but realized he had a point. She forced the rest of her meal down, then went to pack. On the way to her room she ran into Anders, who still had a suspicious look on his face. "Umm... is there something wrong Anders? You've had that expression on your face for awhile now."

"What? Oh no, absolutely nothing at all!" he replied a little frantically.

"If you're sure..." Elissa trailed off. At the emphatic nod Anders gave her she started to walk down the hall, but was quickly cut short.

"Wait! Okay, you're right. There's something I've been wondering about. Why are you bringing me of all people to Denerim? There's templars there, angry templars! I don't think people will be exactly friendly towards me," Anders told her.

"Apparently you haven't noticed, but mages that are members of the Grey Wardens aren't expected to stay in the Circle. No one will say anything to you either since the Grey Wardens are once again recognized as the people's saviors from the Blight." Noticing that Anders still looked a little wary, Elissa continued, "Relax, no templars are going to capture you and return you to the Circle. You've been on the run for too long."

"That's true... I guess I'll just have to get used to my freedom!" he said with slightly forced cheer. As he walked away, Elissa noticed that he did seem a little happier than he had at the start of their conversation.

The rest of her time was uninterrupted and she was able to get her things saddled onto a horse within an hour. Alistair, Anders, and Nathaniel came out and saddled their horses soon enough, and Elissa noticed how they all acted around one another. Unsurprisingly, Nathaniel stood off on his own, doing his best to ignore Anders. Alistair, on the other hand, was getting along great with Anders. Elissa wasn't surprised, they both were constantly making jokes. Alistair's just tended to be a little less sexual.

From the corner of her eye, Elissa saw Oghren coming out of the keep, and she walked over to talk to him. "Can I trust you to be a little less drunk than you usually are while you're in charge?" she asked once she reached him.

"We both know I'm the best choice Warden. Which of these other nug humpers would you trust with this job? I'll get drunk when I need to, and that's all you need to know," he told her with an air of authority in his voice.

"I see you're already giving commands. You seem less drunk than usual, too, so I won't worry. Take care, Oghren," Elissa said with a smile. Oghren returned her goodbye with a bone-crushing hug, surprising her greatly.

"I won't let you down," he told her.

"Oh, um, okay. I know you won't," she replied, still a little dumbstruck from the hug. She and Oghren had never really gotten along that well. _It's always nice to know people care, I guess,_she thought to herself, and got on her horse. She and the others in her party left the keep, a small group that had said goodbye behind them at the gates.

The first couple of days on the road they made good time, and Elissa felt they could make it to Denerim in another day or two. She was happy to see that no darkspawn had shown up yet, and concluded that any remaining darkspawn were either doing a much better job of hiding themselves than normal or they had returned to the Deep Roads.

She rode up next to Alistair. "We could probably stop now and make it to Denerim before noon tomorrow. Do you think we should?" she asked him.

Alistair looked around at their companions, then nodded. "I don't think it would hurt. I am a little afraid that the longer we keep these two traveling together the more likely Nathaniel is too try and kill Anders, but at least we'll have some entertainment with dinner." Elissa chuckled and signaled to the other two that they were going to stop and set up camp.

It turned out that dinner didn't have the entertainment Alistair had predicted, and was actually very uneventful. Elissa had decided to cook rather than let Alistair try for the third night in a row. Even though Anders and Nathaniel insisted Alistair's cooking was better than anything they could have done, she got the distinct feeling that they were going to vomit in the woods if they had to endure that again. She could sympathize.

"Finally, something I think I might want seconds of," Nathaniel said with dry humor after taking the first bite.

"Hey!" Alistair retorted mildly. It was obvious from the look on his face that even though Elissa's cooking wasn't great, after eating his own he was in complete agreement with Nathaniel.

As the meal continued, Elissa couldn't help but notice the differences between this camp and the one she had spent so much time in during the Blight. There were fewer people, which made traveling faster but a little less interesting. The clearing they were in, though smaller, was less cramped from everyone's separate tents. The most obvious difference, and the one that saddened Elissa the most, was the lack of familiarity between everyone. After Nathaniel and Anders had gone to sleep, she mentioned this to Alistair.

"I've noticed it, too. It's weird to realize there are some things from the Blight that I actually miss. Not that I'm not relieved it's over. I'm just used to being surrounded by people I know, even if I don't like all of them," he told her.

"It's like what you said when we first met about the Blight bringing people together. I just thought you were an attractive weirdo back then. Now I realize you were completely right," Elissa said drowsily.

"I was just joking then. I had no idea how true that would turn out to be. Look at us."

"Yeah, look at us," Elissa murmured. She moved closer to Alistair and rested her head on his shoulder. After a few minutes of comfortable silence, the kind that exists when two people are completely at ease with one another, she fell asleep like that in front of the campfire.


	3. Lies and Strangers

Chapter 3: Lies and Strangers

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When Denerim came into view, Elissa was relieved to see that no one appeared to be eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Hero of Ferelden. "Oh don't worry, you're adoring public is probably just within the gates, waiting to spring a surprise parade on you when you walk into the city," Alistair said from behind her.

Elissa turned around and playfully hit him on the shoulder. "Hey for all I know they might be eagerly awaiting my return. The first few months are always the hardest for heroes! So many adoring fans... It's not exactly something I ever wanted for myself," she ended more seriously.

"Based on my time here while you were in Amaranthine, I think that it's safe to say that it won't be nearly as bad as it would have been had you remained in the city for a month or two. The novelty is wearing off. You'll only have to deal with being recognized by everyone now, which was happening a lot as the only surviving Wardens in Ferelden anyway."

"That's a relief. We still have a couple days before the Weisshaupt Wardens arrive, right? We'll have time to decide on what to tell them?"

Slowly Alistair replied, "Well, they were supposed to arrive in a few more days, but I was under the impression that was at the latest..."

"What?" Elissa whispered harshly. "We need some privacy to decide what to tell them! I'll think of a reason to send Nathaniel and Anders ahead of us. Then we'll talk about this."

"Hey Elissa!" Alistair called as she walked away.

"What?" she called back with much exasperation.

"Go easy on them. They're not the ones you're mad at right now, remember?" he said with a grin that for some reason always managed to calm her down.

"Oh, right. I'll try," she replied. By the time she reached the other two, Elissa had calmed down enough to hide her shock from the news she had just received. "I need you two to go ahead of me and Alistair. There are some supplies I want to get while we're in the city. I would do it myself, but, well... I'm afraid I'll be recognized. I don't handle fans well."

Anders had a completely incredulous look on his face. Nathaniel's expression was disbelieving as well. "Won't people recognize me as well?" he asked. "After all, I am a noble."

"And how many templars will be just walking around?" Anders questioned her. "I am definitely recognizable to them."

_Shoot, not the best excuse I could have given them,_ Elissa realized. "It won't be as bad for either of you as it would be for me and Alistair."

Both men begrudgingly agreed, and Elissa wrote down what she wanted them to get. "Wouldn't we be better off talking to the queen about going through their armory for these weapons and armor?" Nathaniel asked.

_I'm really not thinking this plan through,_ Elissa thought. Desperate at this point to get rid of them, Elissa responded, "I don't care where you go, just get the weapons and armor!"

"Oh I see what's going on," Anders said with a look of dawning realization.

"You do?" Elissa asked, surprised.

"You want some time alone with your fellow senior Warden. Why didn't you just say so? That would have gotten rid of me more quickly than this charade."

"If what he says is true, the same goes for me," said Nathaniel.

Elissa stood shocked. That wasn't what she had expected at all, but Anders was right, it made a lot more sense than what she was trying to tell him. Taking her shocked silence as confirmation, Anders said, "We'll just be going now then. Do you really want us to buy these things?"

"Umm, no, no. You're fine. I just, um, had no idea I was so obvious."

Anders laughed at that, obviously finding Elissa's supposed discomfort at his discovering the reason she wanted him and Nathaniel gone very entertaining. He and Nathaniel then went on ahead.

Elissa slowed her walk so that Alistair would catch up to her. "What did you tell them?" Alistair asked upon reaching her.

"They believe that I got rid of them so that we could have some time alone," Elissa told him. Noticing that Alistair was starting to blush at the idea of her talking about intimate aspects of their relationship with other people, she added, "Anders actually came to that conclusion on his own. My reason was pretty flimsy. I said I needed them to do some errands and just didn't want to deal with people recognizing me. I just went with what he said instead. It worked a lot better."

"He would think that was why you wanted to get rid of him," Alistair sighed. "It's better than him knowing what we're really talking about, that's for sure."

"Definitely. So, I was thinking... the truth is at least something to consider telling them," Elissa said, staring at her feet as she walked since she knew that the idea wouldn't be met with enthusiasm.

"I couldn't agree more. While we're at it, let's tell them that we secretly worship desire demons and have made a fortune selling slaves to Tevinter," he replied sarcastically.

"The Wardens do whatever it takes, Alistair. I'm not saying we have to tell them the truth, I would just feel better if we did. I know it sounds really weird considering I've killed people before, and lying pales in comparison, but I just feel uncomfortable doing it."

"You're right, that sounds really weird. You can't possibly be serious about telling the truth? Doing whatever it takes didn't require us to do that ritual to stop the Blight. We did that because we didn't want to see the other one die. I doubt they'll understand."

"I just think that if we tell them the truth we'll be saving ourselves a lot of future trouble. We'll definitely need a back up plan since we have no idea what the Weisshaupt Wardens are like, but I think that we might be able to get away with telling the truth! Besides, you're a horrible liar."

Alistair opened his mouth to object, but quickly reconsidered. "Fine, if we meet them and they seem more like the understanding grandparently type, then we can consider telling them the truth. If they're like the grandparents that whip you with their belt when they catch your hand in the cookie jar, I think not."

"Agreed. So what do you want to tell them if they turn out to be the second type?"

"I was hoping you would have something in mind actually. Everything I think of seems like it would be found out too easily," Alistair admitted. After a moment of thought, he added, "Well there was one idea, but that's where my bad lying foiled the plan."

"It's at least worth hearing," Elissa told him.

"I suppose that's true. So I was thinking that the most obvious thing would probably work at first. It wouldn't make sense for us to have any idea why we're still alive. They'll most likely ask us about what happened the days prior to reaching the horde, especially anything to do with darkspawn, and then what actually happened when we reached Denerim and fought the Archdemon. That's the hard part. If our stories include nothing unusual, it will be obvious we're lying since nothing different happened with us than past Grey Wardens that died like they were supposed to."

"And if something unusual did happen, it would make sense for us to not know since we didn't have the chance to learn anything about what we were supposed to be doing. Wow Alistair, this is perfect!" Elissa exclaimed, admiration showing on her face. "I still think we should tell the truth if possible," she added, giving Alistair a stern look.

"There was actually another problem with that plan, now that I'm saying it out loud. We'll have to think of something unusual that will be difficult to recreate, so that other Wardens don't try it and falsely believe they'll survive." Alistair's expression became worried and somber. He added, "I don't want to be responsible for some young Warden in the future killing the Archdemon for glory and then dying. Not if he believes it's avoidable because of a lie I tell."

"I guess you understand my point of view now, huh?" Elissa asked ruefully.

"Yeah... but we can't solely depend on that as our plan. So, what's a nearly impossible thing to recreate that we just happened to be lucky enough to stumble across?"

"Uhhh... the Archdemon liked us?"

"Haha, I wish! Maybe then we could have just asked him nicely to stop his rampage of death and destruction and he would have happily returned to the Deep Roads," Alistair said, grinning.

"If only, if only," Elissa replied, also smiling. "Whatever we do tell them should probably be something that happened on top of Fort Drakon. If it happened during the battle we might be able to pass it off as a one-time thing, and not worry about future Wardens trying it. Maybe something relating to our nightmares?"

"This sounds like it would be something you'd have to tell them, since you were the one that actually killed the Archdemon. Some sort of nightmare you have with it right after you kill it, maybe?"

"Like I battle it to the death in my nightmare? That's a little corny..."

"Heeyy! I only said you had to have a nightmare involving it, no heroic after battle. You're probably right, though. Something that wouldn't work out quite so well in a bard's tale might be better."

"Maybe we could say that we somehow connected to it in a dream beforehand," Elissa suggested.

"And you said that I was corny?" was Alistair's reply.

"Okay no dream things. There all too corny to work," Elissa huffed. "Maybe we could say you mortally wounded it and I killed it, so in a sense we both killed it? The soul of the Old God could have been confused and not known who to go to," she said hopefully.

"We need a little more time to think about this," Alistair decided. "Do you think that they'll decide to interrogate us immediately or give us a little time?"

"I honestly don't know," Elissa said. "We're almost to Denerim, so let's hope they wait a little."

The rest of the walk was spent brainstorming various ways they could have possibly survived defeating the Archdemon, all of which were shot down. They arrived at the gates of Denerim the same time as another group of travelers. There were three men and two women, all heavily armored. Elissa wondered who these people were. Their armor and weapons were high quality, and their manner was all business. A thought slowly crept into Elissa's mind about their identity, but she pushed it away, not wanting to believe it. She looked at Alistair, and guessed from his facial expression that he had come to the same conclusion.

The strangers did not reciprocate the attention Elissa and Alistair were paying them. Motioning for Alistair to stay back she used their inattention to sneak closer and hopefully overhear their plans in the city. Unfortunately for her, they were mostly quiet until they reached the gates, with the exception of a little small talk. Elissa was given the impression that the travelers didn't get along very well, or that they were just unnaturally silent. Either one was possible for all she knew.

Distracted by her thoughts about these people's unusual silence, Elissa almost walked right into one of them. Catching herself just in time to avoid the man, she fell back into step next to Alistair.

"Do you think that they're the Wardens from what you overheard?" he whispered.

"They barely talked except to comment on the wet dog smell. Since I've never noticed that smell, but every foreigner I've ever met has, the only thing I learned was that they're not from Ferelden," Elissa whispered back in frustration.

At that point the men and women had been stopped at the gate. "They'll have to tell the guard that stopped them what they're doing in the city. Let's get closer," Elissa said.

As they drew closer, they saw who appeared to be the oldest in the group, a tall, older man with a thick gray beard and short gray hair, telling the guard why they needed to get into the city. "We have business at the castle here. There are a few people we need to see there." He spoke in a friendly voice that reminded Elissa of a grandfather. Hearing that voice coming from a man dressed in full armor with a battleaxe on his back made her want to burst out laughing.

"You'll have to more specific than that if you want to get in. We don't just let everyone into the castle," the guard responded to the man.

"We're _Grey Wardens_. We have business with other _Grey Wardens_ regarding _Grey Warden_ matters. Is that specific enough for you?" the man said in the same voice, but with a sharper edge that indicated he would say no more.

"Oh! W-why didn't you s-say so?" the guard asked, unnerved by the subtle change in the man. "Go right on in. Do you need any help reaching the castle?" The man looked up and around, searching for someone to escort the Grey Wardens. Spotting Elissa, his face looked relieved. "That woman there is a Grey Warden. I'm sure she can help you." He then hurried off, obviously glad to have someone to pass the Wardens off to.

"I knew I wouldn't like being recognized," Elissa said under her breath, and then more loudly, "You are the Wardens from Weisshaupt then? I overheard your conversation with that man."

"Yes, you may have noticed that I don't like to discuss Grey Warden business with outsiders. Please, don't judge me based on what you just saw. I can sometimes seem cold, but only when I'm dealing with business." The man smiled at that, a disarming grandfatherly smile. Normally Elissa would immediately trust someone like this, but he was almost too nice. Something just seemed... off.

"I'm Elissa, and this is Alistair. We're the Wardens you've come to meet," she replied, smiling and holding out her hand to shake. He shook her hand, and then introduced himself.

"My name is Arthur, and I think that it would be better if we just finished introductions at the castle so that we all can do that personally. Just to help us all get better acquainted with you."

"Okay. Follow me then." Elissa started to take the lead and Alistair folllowed.

"He seems a little too nice. Arthur, that is," Alistair commented when he felt sure that the other Wardens wouldn't hear him.

"I agree. Everything about him seems like he's trying to make us feel secure. Then he'll get angry and go psychotic on us if we actually fall for it," Elissa said. "But on the bright side, if he's actually what he appears to be, we might be able to tell the truth."

"I somehow doubt that," Alistair sighed.

Elissa also sighed, and tried to block out all the worries threatening to invade her mind. "Yeah, me too."


	4. Meeting New People

Chapter 4: Meeting New People

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After they arrived at the castle, Elissa led the group into the main hall. While the Weisshaupt Wardens took in their surroundings she decided to take a closer look at the visitors. The youngest had olive skin and curly ink-black hair. His eyes were cold and flint colored. He appeared to be about 6'3" and his height combined with his muscular body, chainmail armor, and greatsword made him look like a formidable foe. Elissa made a mental note to stay on his good side if he had one. The other man had red hair that was balding. He was of average height and had the same hard glint in his green eyes. The older of the two women had chestnut hair that was beginning to gray. She was short, probably 5'3", but her leather armor showed off her toned muscles. Her blue eyes also had that hardened look. The youngest woman had light blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail, revealing pointed ears. Her skin was flawless and she wore mage's robes. Elissa noticed that the girl didn't have the cold, hardened look that the others possessed, as if though she had less time to be exposed to the cruelties of the world.

Arthur spoke, startling Elissa out of her thoughts. "Now would probably be a good time to introduce each other, don't you think? How about you go first?" he asked the youngest man in a voice that said it wasn't a suggestion. The man begrudgingly stepped forward.

"I am Brayden. I was recruited into the Wardens while visiting the Anderfels from Antiva." His voice didn't seem to fit him at all. His accent was surprisingly subtle and Elissa couldn't help but feel attracted to him. Brayden stepped back, but not without taking a moment to give Arthur a dirty look. Elissa realized she had been right about not everyone getting along.

"You go next," Arthur 'suggested' to the elfin girl.

Timidly she stepped forward. "My name is Rhianth. I became a Warden when your Blight was beginning. I can't imagine stopping a Blight, especially being so new to the Wardens," she said in a voice that was soft and mellifluous, but tinged with hero worship. She ducked her head down as if embarrassed and stepped back.

Next the other woman stepped forward. "I'm Castille. I'm the most senior Warden after Arthur. I've been one for fifteen years," she said with a little pride, then stepped back.

Finally the redheaded man stepped forward. "I'm Feryn. I've been a Warden for ten years, and I must say I've never heard of anything like what you claim to have done. Unless you didn't really kill the Archdemon, that is," Feryn said, the accusation clear in his voice.

Alistair took an angry step forward. "Exactly how do you think we would have faked that? Did we just ask the archdemon to play dead for a bit between swinging swords and shooting arrows at it?"

Arthur took the moment to retake control of the situation. "No one's accusing anyone. Feryn is just noting the most obvious reason for you being alive. It would be very easy to tell if the Archdemon wasn't dead, and that's not the case. Feryn can just be a little outspoken is all," Arthur said in a voice that Elissa assumed was supposed to be soothing but only grated on her nerves.

"I think I'll call for Queen Anora. She'll be able to get you everything you need until you need to talk to us." Elissa turned to a guard near her and asked him to find the queen. After a few minutes of awkward silence and tension that made Elissa even more positive that the group didn't get along, Anora arrived.

Elissa bowed low and said "Your majesty, it's good to see you again."

"The same to you Warden. These are the visitors from Weisshaupt, I presume?" Anora responded formally.

"Yes. I thought you would want to be aware of their arrival. If you don't mind, I would like to leave to go to my rooms and rest after my journey, along with Alistair."

"Of course. Thank you Warden." With that Anora turned to the other Wardens and Alistair and Elissa left the room.

Once they were about halfway to the room, Alistair stopped. "How do you do that?" he asked her.

"Do what?" she asked, confused.

"Deal with royalty like that. Every time I have to I freeze up or end up saying something that so deeply insults them I can't show my face around the castle for a week. It happened a few times when I was here on my own," Alistair said in disbelief.

"I've had to deal with the formalities of court my entire life. It's second nature to me," Elissa said simply. It had never occurred to her that someone might have difficulties with something she had been doing since she was old enough to talk.

"Well I find it to be an amazing skill that I need to learn. That along with dealing with Wardens that think you didn't really kill the Archdemon. I really wanted to stick a sword through that guy." Alistair shook his head in disgust. "You know there's no way we can tell them the truth, right?" he added.

"Don't remind me. It would have been so much easier that way. I have no idea what to tell them. It just makes me so frustrated!" The more Elissa thought about it the more frustrated she became. The more frustrated she became the angrier she would get, and eventually the two would just start supplying each other until Elissa was in such a bad mood that no one could be around her. Unfortunately one of those moods was beginning. Elissa began to think of ways that she would be able to blow off steam. "Let's go spar," she said to Alistair, and began to walk towards the soldier's barracks.

Alistair grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him. Whenever she had wanted to spar in camp she had almost always been in a mood to do someone serious harm, and Alistair knew that. She struggled against him for a few minutes, and slowly the anger ebbed away until she collapsed against him, exhausted. She could feel Alistair's chest shaking underneath her head. _Great, he's laughing at my emotional distress, _she thought. She knew that her minor temper tantrums probably looked a little ridiculous, so she didn't blame him. "Fine, fine, I change my mind. Sparring is a bad idea."

"Good. That means I can relax for a bit." Alistair was silent for a minute, causing Elissa to look up to see if she could figure out what he was thinking. A thoughtful look was on his face.

"What is it? Did you come up with a plan for dealing with the Wardens?" she asked bitterly, her bad mood returning.

"Maaayybeee…"

"What? What is it?" Elissa felt like she could walk on air. The heavy burden she had felt only a few seconds earlier was completely gone now.

"I can't actually tell you. This will only work if your reaction is genuine." Alistair used his most reassuring voice, but Elissa still felt all her previous elation disappear. What could Alistair be hiding? She trusted him completely, but that didn't make walking into an interview with the Wardens blind any easier. It took all her willpower to not use every trick she knew in order to make him tell her what he was thinking.

"Oh Maker, this is harder than I thought it would be. The look on your face is making me want to tell you already." Alistair's resolve was clearly breaking. Uncertainly, he added, "I think I may have to avoid being with you until after dinner. Only so there's no chance of me giving it away. You understand, right?"

"I do… Now you go off and work on your plan to save our lives." Elissa smiled and pushed him away, even though it was really the last thing she wanted to do. Having time to herself where she would do nothing but contemplate what exactly Alistair's plan was definitely wasn't going to help her. She quickly walked away, and found herself automatically walking to the barracks. _So much for not sparring,_ she thought.

As she walked into the barracks she scanned the area for a suitable sparring partner. Months of training during the Blight had ensured that just choosing any soldier would usually result in a quick match with her victory. Truth be told, that wasn't uncommon before the Blight either. A faint rustle behind her alerted Elissa of someone's approach. She turned around to find one of her best friends. "Zev!"

She pulled him into a fierce hug. He laughed and returned it.

"It's good to see that you didn't decide life was better without me during your time in Amaranthine," he joked.

"Of course not. You have perfect timing, as always. I was just looking for a sparring partner. Care to join me?" Elissa gave Zev a mischievous look that she knew would make him wonder what she was planning for this particular match. Which was nothing, but she knew Zevran couldn't resist that look.

"I would be honored. No rules other than don't seriously maime or kill each other, as usual?" he replied, a small smile beginning to form and one eyebrow lifted in amusement.

"You know me too well. Shall we begin?" With a nod from Zevran the two made their way to the small practice yard. Facing opposite ends of the yard, they unsheathed their weapons and began to walk around each other. Being the more impatient of the duo, Elissa attacked first. Zev narrowly sidestepped her quick swing and began to parry with moves of his own. The two ducked and jumped as the blades whirred around their bodies, never more than a blur. Zevran began to use both blades to swing at her, and she had to roll away backwards to avoid being wacked in the side.

Slowly he began to push her towards the fence of the yard, and she began to look around for advantages in her environment. A quick scan of the ring proved that her best bet to turn the tide of this match would be to use the fence to flip over Zevran and reverse their roles. As he brought his blades down yet another time she pushed back harder than before. Quickly she whirled around and jumped onto a post of the fence, and she pushed will all her might to flip over Zevran. She hit the ground softly, a result from her training as a rogue. Her position allowed her to swiftly kick her foot out and unbalance her friend. He barely caught himself before hitting the ground, and rolled away right before Elissa could pin him down.

Not allowing him time to get back up, she maneuvered into a position that would allow her to back him into a corner. She hit him in the back with the flat of her blade, causing him to fall to the ground again. He recovered faster this time and somersaulted away from her into a stance that would allow him to dart in any direction to escape her next attack. Elissa swiped at him with both her blades, eventually doing the same as he had done only a few minutes ago. Unlike her before him, Zevran was actually managing to get in a few blows in between hers. She only hoped that he would tire soon, but he was more proficient with daggers than she was since she preferred to use her bow and arrows. After a moment a blow to her side left her staggering, and Zevran took the chance to pin her to the ground. She could feel the cold metal of his dagger against her neck. "I yield," she muttered.

"Your time at Amaranthine has left you a little soft," Zevran joked.

"Oh please we both know that you always won a few of our matches at camp. I can't win every time." Despite losing, Elissa felt a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips. Zev was the perfect person to spar with since his similar style of fighting left less chance of him being seriously harmed than the average soldier. She had also missed him over the last few months.

"Ah this is true. That does not make my victory any less gratifying though," he responded a little smugly. Elissa pretended to be annoyed and rolled her eyes, receiving a laugh. Zevran put his arm around her shoulders and walked into the castle with her.

After a few minutes of companionable silence, Elissa realized she had no idea where they were going. "Zev, where are you taking me anyway?"

"I figured you would like to visit that lovely queen Ferelden has. She should be done talking to our newest visitors by now."

Elissa was stunned. She hadn't realized that Zevran would know about that. It made sense, she knew, considering he had been an assassin and would be used to being aware of what was going on. "How much do you know?"

"For sure, only that Grey Wardens from Weisshaupt are here. Educated guessing tells me they want to speak with you about the archdemon." With the last comment Zevran snuck a sideways glance at Elissa. She tried her best not to give away the worry she felt, but she knew it was hopeless. "I see I was correct," he added. After a moment's pause, he asked "What _did_ happen Elissa?"

After making sure they were completely alone, Elisssa took a deep breath and explained everything. Morrigan appearing in her room, what she had told her, the ritual that followed, that this was why Morrigan had left, everything. At the end of her story, Elissa waited to see how Zevran would react.

"I'm surprised Alistair would consent to that. I should have known he was less of a prude than he led us to believe," Zevran joked, and received a hard punch to his shoulder for it. "But on a more serious note, I don't see the problem with any of that. What's wrong with wanting to survive?"

"This is an ancient magic. There could be unknown side effects. And a baby with the soul of an old god is probably going to be different from your average child," Elissa told him wearily.

"Hmmm, I see the problem then. Well perhaps you will be able to get some useful information about your fellow Wardens from Anora." Zevran led Elissa the rest of the way to Anora's study, which was where he said she was found most often these days. Apparently Zev had also been at court, though Alistair hadn't bothered to tell her that. When asked about it, he replied, "I didn't think it would help him to know I was here, and I was actually going to join you in Amaranthine soon. I just wanted to enjoy some of the finer aspects of city life before I left, such as the brothel."

"I should have known," she replied with a laugh. When they reached Anora's study, she knocked loudly on the oak door. She entered after hearing a faint "Come in".

Elissa stepped in to find Anora sitting behind a wide oak desk that matched the door, with paper piled high in front of her.

"I assume you want to know about my meeting with the other Wardens. As you have probably already noticed, they do not get along. That man Arthur is in charge and his control comes mainly from intimidation. I suspect he has a reputation in Weisshaupt that we are not privy to. I don't know how hard Arthur will push to find what he is looking for, but be sure not to anger him. Feryn is all talk and won't do anything without Arthur's okay, and you don't have to worry about the others. If anything you can use them to your advantage by convincing them of whatever you plan to tell them," Anora told her after Elissa had taken a few steps.

Elissa stood stunned, her mouth hanging open in shock. She had anticipated having to push Anora to remember those sorts of details. On the other hand, making those types of judgments on people was invaluable to a queen. Elissa should have expected Anora to be doing exactly that with the Wardens. Finally she managed to speak despite her surprise. "Thank you, that's all I needed," she responded. Still a little stunned, she began to leave the room.

"Oh, they also want to conduct their interview with you after dinner," Anora called after her.

"Thank you again," Elissa said in a slightly worried tone, and returned to Zevran outside the room.

"That was surprisingly helpful," she told him. "Alistair and I are to be interviewed by the Wardens after dinner."

"Dinner is now," Zevran told her with a concerned look.

"Then we better get going."


	5. Flemeth Maybe?

**Author's Note: So sorry about the lack of updates! I haven't been consistent with this story at all, but I've been working on it a lot more lately and updates will be much more regular. Thanks for sticking around! The story will also start progressing faster. It's been taking a bit longer than I thought it would to really get it going.**

Chapter 5: Flemeth Maybe?

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Elissa quickly went to her room to change, and then made her way down to the dining hall. When she walked in she saw that she and Alistair had been placed at the head of the table near Anora, with the Weisshaupt Wardens next to them. _Well this should be fun,_ Elissa thought somewhat bitterly. She forced a pleasant smile that she was sure looked more like a grimace onto her face.

Arthur spoke first. "So nice to see you again, m'lady." His eyes reminded Elissa of a hawk's searching for weakness in its prey. "I was just informing Alistair that we hoped to conduct our interview with you after dinner." Arthur smiled and Elissa half expected to see that he had fangs.

"Oh, that sounds like a good plan," she choked out. She began to take slow breaths in an attempt to calm herself. _If you can't even speak like a normal person with nothing to hide, they'll know you did something and that will ruin whatever Alistair's plan is,_ she thought to herself. "What exactly does this 'interview' entail?" she questioned Arthur.

"That will have to wait until we are in a more private setting, now won't it?" Arthur told her. Elissa forced herself to nod.

"Of course, I should have realized that would involve Warden secrets not to be discussed now," she responded pleasantly.

The rest of the dinner consisted of pointless conversation between Anora and Arthur. Elissa relaxed a little now that Arthur didn't seem to be completely focused on her. She took the opportunity to further survey the other Wardens. Every once in a while she would catch Rhianth sending sideways glances toward her and Alistair, and whenever she realized that Elissa spotted her doing so her cheeks would turn bright pink. Brayden focused mostly on his food, distaste evident on his face. Elissa presumed he didn't like the food; most foreigners had no problem finding many faults with the Ferelden way of life, and the food was no exception. Castille was looking around the room as though she was surveying it for places that an assassin might hide or deciding what spots would be good for an ambush. Feryn simply stared at Elissa and Alistair. His blatancy unnerved Elissa, but she remembered what Anora had said about him not doing anything unless Arthur okayed it, and she felt a little better.

Elissa decided now would be a good time to possibly win some of the Wardens over to her side, even if it was just by being friendly and making them like her. After all, they were less likely to want to kill her if they liked her, right? She began with a general question to all of them. "So, what do you think of Ferelden so far?"

Castille was the first to respond. "It is clearly a country of warriors. Even the farmers we came across didn't flinch away from any sign of danger, and everyone we have met is fiercely proud of their country. Not everyone can defeat a Blight on their own. In the past it has taken several countries," she ended with a slight note of skepticism.

"Our country has done much that wasn't expected of it. We take pride in that," Elissa heard Alistair say to Castille. She turned to him and saw a look of interest on his face. She wished that she had been able to tell him what Anora had told her earlier, but he appeared to be handling himself well without the information. She had complete confidence that he would pick up on her attempts to win over the less hostile of the Wardens.

"Ferelden may have a history of defeating other countries wanting to take it over, but darkspawn are very different. It's one thing to defeat a king's army, it's another to defeat a horde of darkspawn with the Archdemon at the head," Brayden put in. Alistair's comment seemed to have interested him, and Elissa was surprised to hear pure interest rather than hostility in his tone.

"When Ferelden fought against a tyrant king its army was led by the rightful king. When it fought against the Archdemon it was led by the nation's only Grey Wardens who were helped by some of the most skilled fighters and healers out there. We adapt to our situation," Alistair told him.

"I see," Brayden responded, a look of surprised satisfaction on his face. He leaned back, as if to contemplate what Alistair had just told him.

"It's amazing what you two did on your own," Rhianth commented.

"Oh it wasn't just us," Elissa told her. "We had a lot of help from friends. And an entire army behind us."

"But mostly help from one friend," Alistair said quietly. Elissa tried to hide her surprise at what Alistair had just said. What if they had heard him? Elissa didn't want the Wardens questioning them about their companions. Alistair ignored the questioning look she sent his way.

The rest of dinner continued in much the same way, minus the cryptic comments from Alistair about the help of a certain friend. By the end of the meal Castille seemed to have an almost motherly attitude towards Alistair reminiscent of how Wynne had acted toward him, and Brayden certainly had more respect for both the Ferelden Wardens. If it was possible, Rhianth's hero worship had increased. Elissa snuck a look toward Arthur and Feryn. Arthur was still speaking with Anora, and Feryn appeared extremely bored and trying to fake an interest in Anora and Arthur's conversation.

Soon after, Arthur walked toward Alistair and Elissa. "I think now would be a good time to begin our official business," he said to them, an unpleasant smile plastered to his face.

"I couldn't think of anything better," Elissa responded just as sweetly. "Let's do this in Anora's study, if she doesn't mind."

"I've already asked and she suggested that spot," Arthur told her.

Once they had all gathered in the study, Arthur became all business, and his true character began to show. In a hardened voice he spoke. "Listen, we know that you did something to prevent the Archdemon from killing you, we just don't know what. There's a good chance that it remains inside one of you, despite your good intentions, and you will have to die. The only way we can be sure is by performing a ceremony to make sure that there is no extra taint inside of you. It involves blood magic."

Elissa looked at Alistair to see how he would react to that. They both knew from their experience with the demon that had possessed Sophia Dryden's body that blood magic wasn't new to the Wardens, but that didn't lessen either's distaste for it. "And how exactly will blood magic help anything?" Alistair asked, his voice deceptively calm.

"It is the only way to be sure the Archdemon is truly dead," Arthur stated simply, "unless, of course, you can prove otherwise to me."

"What exactly are you expecting us to have done, ser? Is there something in our travels we could have come across that would have done something to us? Some sort of ancient magic that would have protected us? I spent years studying to be a templar, and I don't remember anything that powerful coming up," Alistair told Arthur skeptically. When he mentioned the ancient magic, Elissa barely kept her face from betraying her emotions. What was wrong with Alistair? He kept straying uncomfortably close to the truth.

"Actuallly, ancient magic is exactly what we're thinking," Arthur replied. "I don't believe that anything would have affected you if you simply passed by it, though. Whatever you did, it was deliberate."

"Don't be ridiculous, we only discovered the night before that one of us would have to die in order to kill the Archdemon. It wasn't something we exactly planned on happening," Alistair retorted.

Castille stepped forward. "Duncan didn't tell you what might be required of you after he made you Wardens?" she asked.

"No, there wasn't time," Elissa told her softly. "I don't think he thought we would have to worry about it either, being the newest to the order…" Silence followed, none of the Wardens knowing how to respond to the subject of Duncan's death and the new information that he hadn't told Elissa or Alistair about the Archdemon.

Finally Alistair spoke. "During the Battle of Ostagar, we were saved by Flemeth. She's old, ancient even, with powerful magic. I could sense it, and it was different from the magic we'd been exposed to in training. Could she have done something?"

Elissa's mouth nearly dropped open. She struggled to remain calm. "A-Alistair, are you saying Flemeth might have done something to us? Why?"

"Maybe she saw some greater use for us past the Blight. Maybe she thought we would both be necessary to rebuild after the Blight," Alistair replied, seemingly lost in thought.

"That is… an intriguing possibility," Arthur said. "I must admit, how you survived Ostagar has always been a mystery to me. Perhaps this bears more investigation. You two will leave tomorrow morning with us and show us the location of Flemeth, if she even exists."

"I assure you, she exists. But I don't think it's a realistic possibility for us to leave right now. We need to focus on rebuilding the Wardens. I can tell you that she lives in a hut in the Korcari Wilds, not far from Ostagar. She may have moved, though, in order to escape the Blight. That's what is sounded like she was planning when we left," Alistair told them. "Apparently even the most ancient of magic is threatened by a Blight."

"Fine, we will travel on our own to Ostagar. We will leave in the morning after the ceremony has been performed by Rhianth, and we will leave her as well as Brayden and Castille to watch after you as Feryn and I investigate this theory. We can't leave you alone until this theory is more substantial. Good night." And with that Arthur left the room with Feryn following him out and a seething Alistair glaring at his back.

"How can he kill one of us if Flemeth is the one that did something to us? She might be able to undo it!" Alistair yelled to the room.

"Do not worry yourself. I will not allow him to so rashly make decisions when there is the possibility of another way. This is why I was sent with him. Besides, the ceremony itself is harmful only to the caster," Castille told him.

"I… suppose that makes it a little better. I would prefer not to use blood magic though. Are you really a blood mage?" he asked Rhianth, his tone slightly accusatory.

"Y-y-yes ser…" Rhianth stuttered and looked at the ground, apparently ashamed to have disappointed her hero.

Castille broke into the conversation. "I believe we should all go to bed now. Tomorrow is going to be an interesting day."


	6. Blood Magic and the Usual Stuff

Chapter 6: Blood Magic and the Usual Stuff

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When the two arrived in their room that night Elissa immediately began questioning Alistair. "I understand the redirecting their attention to Flemeth, but isn't that getting a little close to Morrigan. What if they had known about Morrigan's background? I wouldn't put it past them!"

"It was a risk I was willing to take. Besides, if they found out anything more about that, I could always bring up the question of why would Flemeth be willing to risk her daughter, especially after what we discovered about her prolonged lifespan. Maker help me if they find out about the sex ritual though. I'll have to pretend I was actually attracted to Morrigan and didn't know the consequences. I shudder at the very thought!" At that Alistair gave a very real shudder, and Elissa had to wonder how far his hatred for Morrigan really went.

"Well I understand that you hate Morrigan, but I would actually like to see her remain unharmed. To be honest, I was actually hoping to find her myself…" Elissa trailed off, realizing that a confrontation with Morrigan was the last thing Alistair would want, but at the same time hoping that he would want to see his child.

"I… think that would be a good idea. I need to see this child. I know I promised not to, but, well, it is my kid, and I know what it's like to grow up without a father. I don't want that for my child," he said seriously.

"I'm glad you see it that way. You will be an amazing father Alistair, if you get the chance. Oh the things this taint takes away from us… Anyways, I'm exhausted, and I need as much rest as I can get before that ceremony. Who would've known sweet little Rhianth was a blood mage?" Elissa asked, changing the subject from the pain of never being able to have a child of her own with Alistair thanks to the taint in their blood.

"Ah, the sweet quiet ones are always the dangerous ones. Think we can use her hero worship to make her change her mind about using blood magic?" Alistair asked, only half joking.

"Hmmm, I suppose we could give it a shot. Maybe then we couldn't do the ceremony!" Elissa exclaimed, then collapsed onto the bed. Soon after that the two were fast asleep.

The next morning came too quickly as far as Elissa was concerned. After waking up from a deep sleep, she was in no mood for any kind of blood magic ritual that might be invasive to her body or mind. She had had enough of that since becoming a Grey Warden.

Slowly she prepared herself for the day. By the end of her routine she felt much better, and she had pushed the upcoming ritual to the back of her mind. Whatever was going to happen was going to happen, and she wouldn't know how to deal with it until it was done due to her and Alistair's lack of knowledge about the ritual. She looked back at the bed where Alistair was still sleeping. "Hey you! Time to get up! We have a big day ahead of us!" Alistair only grunted and rolled over. After a little more prodding from Elissa he finally got up, but his grumpiness was not helping Elissa's stress level.

"Elissa, they obviously can't do the ceremony without us, so why not just sleep in?" he asked, then stuck his face back in his pillow. Elissa only sighed in exasperation.

"Because we need to make a good impression, of course. Now get up because I refuse to face all of them alone, especially if it might risk messing up your plan. We need to stay on the same page at this point."

"Flemeth's dead. They aren't going to find anything when they find the hut and there's no Archdemon in us, so let's just sleep."

"No!" Elissa yanked off the bedcovers, eliciting a cranky whine from Alistair. "Don't make me act like your mother! It's just weird. Now get off your lazy bum!" As she waited for Alistair to get up, Elissa felt a familiar sense of dread building in her at the thought of the ritual. She pushed it to the back of her mind and a funny thought that she sensed would gain Alistair's attention came to mind. "We sound like an old married couple," she stated.

"But we're so young!" Alistair exclaimed, sitting straight up in bed.

Elissa only laughed and threw his clothes at him.

Ten minutes later the couple arrived in Anora's study. The Weisshaupt Wardens were already there, setting up for the ritual.

"They aren't even ready yet, but we still had to hurry down here- ouch! That hurt!" Alistair rubbed his ribs where Elissa had elbowed him, looking sulky.

"Being a little early certainly isn't going to hurt us. I have enough stress right now, and I just want to get this over with," Elissa huffed.

"Sorry, my dear. I wasn't thinking. We'll get through this, don't worry," Alistair said soothingly.

Castille seemed to pick up on the couple's heightened unease. "Don't worry. Like I said, I won't let anything unnecessary happen. Even if there is Archdemon inside you somehow, you won't be killed because of it." Castille's smile eased Elissa's fear somewhat, but the hardened look in her eyes made Elissa wonder what the woman might consider necessary after so many years at Weisshaupt.

"The ceremony is ready. The two of you, step into the circle," Arthur told them as he gestured at a white circle in the middle of the room, with a strange symbol in the middle of it. Rhianth stood on one side of the circle. Her face was more somber than Elissa had ever seen it. Her eyes stared blankly ahead.

"Stand on either side of each other and face me," she told them, her voice monotonous.

"Is she… possessed?" Alistair asked.

"No, but a demon is aiding her in performing this ritual," Arthur told them far too brightly. Alistair began to open his mouth in protest, but Arthur continued, "Before you say anything, realize that it was your actions that drove us to this."

"But it wasn't us! We don't know how we survived!" Alistair argued, but it was useless. Rhianth had already begun the ceremony.

She turned around to an altar behind her and picked up a knife. Slowly, she brought it to her arm and made a cut. Immediately Elissa felt like something had hit her in the stomach and she struggled to stay standing. As she looked up at Rhianth she saw that the blood seem to be floating into the air and moving towards them. She looked over at Alistair for his reaction, but he was doubled over like she was. Elissa looked back at the blood. As it drew closer the pain intensified, until eventually it was all she could do to focus on breathing. She watched in horror as the blood finally came close enough to touch her. Tendrils wrapped themselves around her arms, and she felt a horrible stinging sensation wherever they made contact with her skin. She looked at Alistair again and saw that he was in the same agony she was, and was also looking at her to see how she was doing. She mouthed the words _I'm fine_, but it was an obvious lie.

Then suddenly, the pain was gone as quickly as it had come. Surprised, Elissa collapsed onto the floor from pure exhaustion. She felt Alistair reach over and move her head so that she was facing him. He too had collapsed to the ground, and he looked just as relieved as she felt to be done with the ritual. Other than that, he looked horrible, but Elissa figured she probably didn't look any better. She would rather fight a thousand darkspawn than face that again. Knowing how Alistair felt about blood magic, he probably wasn't doing very well mentally right now, either.

"You two are clean," Arthur said to them, bringing Elissa out of her own thoughts. His tone was surprised, and Elissa couldn't help but feel smug that she and Alistair had proven the man wrong, or at least made it appear that way.

"Now you know why we were against the ritual," Elissa gasped. Finding her breath was surprisingly difficult, and every movement was stiff as she brought herself up off the floor.

"Well… Feryn and I will be leaving then," Arthur said, flustered. Elissa felt more and more satisfied as Arthur's discomfort increased. After a few final words to Castille, the man left.

"Good riddance," Alistair muttered, and Elissa couldn't agree more. Castille looked over at the two of them with a small smile on her face.

"Believe me when I say, you are not the only two happy to see him go," she told them.


	7. Good News from Good Friends

**Disclaimer: I realize I haven't done this in a while, so I just thought I should mention that the Dragon Age World clearly does not belong to me, and that Bioware created everything except for my original characters and my descriptions of places outside of Ferelden.**

**A/N: So I haven't played Leliana's Song and have no idea what Orlais is supposed to be like, so chances are this will be very inaccurate if you're comparing this story to that. Thanks everyone that's reviewed, favorited, and put the story on alert. You're great and please review!**

Chapter 7: Good News from Good Friends

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The next few days were rather uneventful. Elissa was slowly settling into palace life, a huge change from months on the road and then Vigil's Keep. She missed seeing her friends around a campfire every night, and though she hadn't seen any of them except for Ohgren and Alistair for a few months, it was still hard to adjust. She wondered the most about Morrigan and the child she was carrying. Where could she have gone? What were her plans? What would Morrigan do if Elissa found her?

Elissa had actually taken steps to do just that before going to Vigil's Keep. Leliana was returning to Orlais, and Elissa had asked her to use her sources to keep an ear open for any news of a woman fitting Morrigan's description. Elissa and Alistair had actually told Zevran and Leliana about the ritual, but none of their other companions. Elissa believed they were the only ones that would understand and keep the secret safe. Leliana had promised that she would do all she could to find her, and that it would be much easier after taking over Marjolaine's business. Months had passed without any word, and Elissa was becoming frustrated. She reasoned that she knew little of bards and the mechanics of taking over the business of one, but that did little to ease her mind.

Lucky for her, she wouldn't have to wait much longer.

As Elissa was settling down with what she hoped would be a good book in the library, a courier came in searching for her. "I'm over here," she called after hearing him ask one of the maids cleaning the library if she knew where to find the Hero of Ferelden.

The courier, a young boy who couldn't have been older than 17, was breathing hard as he approached. "A letter, ma'am… I was told it's… urgent… I came as quickly… as… I could," he gasped. He looked as though he had been running for miles.

"Sit down! Don't worry, you got here in plenty of time, I'm sure. Let's get you a cup of water." Elissa began to get up, but the boy grabbed her hand to stop her from leaving.

"Forgive me ma'am… but I was told to deliver this personally… and I would greatly appreciate it… if you opened it… sooner… rather than later," the boy huffed. Elissa wasn't sure, but she thought she might have heard a faint Orlesian accent in his voice. Unfortunately, she couldn't be sure due to all of his breaths in between. _Maker, did this boy travel all the way from Orlais to give me a message? The only thing that could be that important is…_

Elissa immediately sat down and opened the letter.

_Elissa,_

_I'm sorry it has taken me so long to write to you. I had to do some clearing of my name before taking over Marjolaine's business, but now I am secure in my position. However, Marjolaine had many enemies that are now my enemies, and I can't be sure that this letter will actually reach you. Assuming you are the one reading, I have good news for you, and you will want to come meet me in Val Royeaux at the Grand Cathedral. I believe our friend is nearby, but you should move quickly in case she decides to move. It shouldn't take you more than a week to reach the city._

_Avec amour,_

_Leliana_

Elissa can hardly believe it. Leliana actually has news about Morrigan. She expected Leliana to try, but the result Elissa had been expecting was a disappointed letter from Leliana telling her that she had done all she could, but there was just no trace of Morrigan anywhere. Elissa looked back at the boy, who seemed to be waiting expectantly. "Did you come all the way from Orlais with this message?" she asked him.

"Yes, ma'am. The lady that gave it to me asked that I bring you back, too," the boy stated.

"How long ago did you receive the letter?"

"Only two days ago. It's a lot faster when it's just me and I can run most of the way."

Elissa had to stop her jaw from dropping. It seemed that Leliana had really found some quality employees already. Something told Elissa that none of the palace guard would be so willing to run all the way from Ferelden to Orlais if she needed a letter delivered. She was impressed, to say the least. "How long do you need to rest?" she asked.

"Just an hour or so. We can leave when you're ready. I'm already much better." 

It was true. Elissa could hardly tell the boy had been huffing and puffing just a few minutes ago. "We'll leave in the morning, then," she said. She quickly left to find Alistair.

She found him in the training yard, having a match with Zevran. She slowed her pace and leaned against the wall to watch the duel. Duels between Zevran and Alistair were infinitely amusing to her, and it appeared that she had shown up about halfway through this one. Alistair looked angry, and Zevran, though sweating profusely, appeared very calm. "Is that really the best you can do?" he jeered at Alistair. It always was easy for him to provoke Alistair. Just another reason their duels were so entertaining.

"Nah, I'm just going easy on you. After all, you haven't had a real fight in months!" Alistair taunted back.

"Oh, you wound me! I'll stop holding back now, so if you want a chance of winning, you better, too!" Zevran lunged at Alistair, using his superior agility to get a few hits to Alistair's legs. Alistair swung around and threw Zevran into the fence with his shield, leaving Zevran momentarily stunned. Alistair was about to hit Zevran with the flat of his blade, but Zevran ducked just in time. He threw his leg out into a leg sweep, and knocked Alistair to the ground. He quickly pounced on top of Alistair and held his blade to Alistair's neck.

"I yield," Alistair muttered.

"What was that? I seem to be having some trouble hearing?" Zevran replied, a huge grin on his face.

"I yield!" Alistair said more forcefully and pushed Zevran off.

Elissa walked over to the two men, laughing the entire time. "I knew there was a reason I missed having you two together!" Alistair just glared, but Zevran returned her smile.

"Querida, there are many reasons to miss having me around. Perhaps I could show you some later?"

"Hey!" Alistair slapped Zevran in the back of the head and switched his glare from Elissa to Zevran.

"Don't worry, you're invited, too!" Zevran told him, resulting in a very red-faced Alistair.

"Though this is very amusing, I do have something to tell you," Elissa told them in between her chuckling.

"Oh really? Please tell me it's not that they're out of cheese! We would have to leave immediately!" Alistair exclaimed.

Elissa laughed. "No, but we do have to leave tomorrow morning. I heard from Leliana. She has news about Morrigan and wants us to meet her in Val Royeaux. She didn't want to say much more in her letter in case it was intercepted," she told him more seriously.

"Sounds like a plan," Zevran said. Elissa and Alistair both stared at him blankly. "You didn't really think I would let you go alone, did you? My dear Warden, I have spent so much time protecting you it seems wrong to do anything else!" He smiled warmly at Elissa, then at Alistair, though the smile wasn't quite as caring.

"Well, we can probably use all the help we can get to find Morrigan. Welcome aboard, Zev!" Elissa gave Zevran a hug. Really she was just happy to have him traveling with her again.

The rest of the evening was spent planning for the trip, and discussing what to say to Castille in order to convince her to let them leave. Though she seemed to have taken a liking to Elissa and Alistair, it was highly unlikely that she would just let them leave. It was decided that Elissa would try to convince her to let them go.

Elissa found Castille in the kitchen speaking with the cook. "I know that it seems like a lot, but my friends and I would greatly appreciate it if you could make a few extra servings for each of us. You're food is just so good, and my friends and I have such big appetites," Castille was saying to the cook, an older woman with a sour look on her face.

"Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt… Now get out of my kitchen!" she yelled. However, there was a small smile on her face as Castille walked away, most likely from being buttered up. _So that's how Castille deals with difficult people. Interesting… _Elissa thought.

"Castille! There's something I was hoping to discuss with you," she began, following her out of the kitchen and joining her as she walked down the hall. "You see, I just received a letter from one of my companions during the Blight. She said it was urgent, but she didn't want to discuss her reason for contacting us in the letter and that we should leave tomorrow morning for Orlais, her current location..." Elissa trailed off, not entirely sure how to ask Castille to disobey Arthur.

Castille looked thoughtful. "You want me to let you leave the castle despite Arthur's orders to watch you at all times," she finally said.

"Yes, that's exactly what I want." Elissa looked at Castille hopefully. The amount of time she had taken to respond to what Elissa had first told her gave Elissa the feeling that Castille already knew the answer she would give.

"Well, Arthur only said we can't leave you alone. You said that you had to remain behind to focus on the Wardens though," Castille added a little skeptically.

"We can learn from the Wardens in Orlais, as well as keep our eyes out for potential recruits there," Elissa told her. She had actually been hoping to speak to Riordan's brothers in the order and let them know what exactly had happened to Riordan. She also hoped that they would be as willing to help as Riordan had been.

"In that case, I don't see any reason why we can't accompany you to Orlais. I trust our presence won't be a hindrance to dealing with your friend's request," Castille said with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course not. We'll leave first thing tomorrow morning," Elissa replied.

"I must say, I have a tiny hope we won't be here when Arthur returns. The look on his face if that happens will be priceless," Castille confided with a twinkle in her eye. "I will ask Anora if she will tell them where we went if that happens."

As Castille walked away Elissa pondered their conversation. She had mixed feelings about Castille's reaction. Castille had been very willing to travel to Orlais, but at the same time she was definitely suspicious about Elissa's motives, and Elissa was sure that Castille knew there was more to this than just an urgent note from a friend. _I suppose I should just be grateful we're going to Orlais. I'll deal with any problems having Castille and the other Wardens around may cause as I get to them, _she thought, and headed to her quarters to pack and get some sleep.

. . .

Exactly a week later, Elissa, Alistair, Zevran, Castille, Rhianth, and Brayden stood outside the gates to Val Royeaux. The boy that had delivered Leliana's message ( they had discovered that Pierre was his name) was urging them forward. More people than Elissa and Alistair had ever seen were flooding the gates. The second they entered the city Elissa understood why Orlesians found Ferelden to be barbaric. Vendors lined the streets, selling everything from expensive perfumes and classy silks to exotic poisons and drakeskin armor. Everyone's clothes were brightly colored. The cobbled streets didn't have a trace of trash on them.

Above it all rose the Grand Cathedral. Elissa's eyes were drawn upward, as well as those of her companions. Intricate patterns covered the bell towers. The bells themselves were polished so that they glimmered in the sunlight. All of Elissa's party stood in awe for a few moments, until they were broken from their reverie by the crowd of people pushing their way past and Pierre's cries to follow him.

The farther into the city the group went, the more bizarre it became. The fashion became more pronounced, and Elissa began to see the elaborate hats covered in feathers and other nonsensical things that Leliana had told her about. Performers now crowded the streets instead of vendors. Acrobats crossed the group's path, doing cartwheels and flips in the hopes of gaining money. Numerous painters yelled to Elissa, Rhianth, and Castille that they would make beautiful subjects. Elissa felt overwhelmed by the never ending bustle of people, and she hoped that they would reach the cathedral soon.

When the Wardens and Zevran did finally reach the cathedral they discovered Leliana sitting on the white marble steps out front. Upon spotting Elissa she jumped up and ran to her, pulling her friend into a tight hug.

"Oh I've missed you so! It just hasn't been the same. And I see you brought Zevran and Alistair," Leliana exclaimed. Confusion filled her eyes as they settled upon the Weisshaupt Wardens. She quickly said something to Pierre in Orlesian and gave him a few coins which he then left with. "Who are your friends?"

"These are Wardens from Weisshaupt. They came to check that we had actually killed the Archdemon," Elissa said smoothly. Since her back was turned to the Wardens she gave Leliana a meaningful look as she said it. She was sure Leliana wouldn't mention anything related to Morrigan in front of them and would find some way to speak in private.

"I assume you have realized that your trip wasn't necessary? Though the opportunity to meet Elissa and Alistair certainly made the trip worthwhile, I'm sure," Leliana said to the Wardens, though her manner was slightly more subdued than it had been originally.

"Yes, we have. Your friends are quite remarkable people," Castille replied. After introductions were made, Leliana became fidgety and seemingly insecure, a behavior which Elissa had only seen with Leliana after they had dealt with Marjolaine and she had a crisis of faith. She couldn't think of any reason for it now though.

"I'm sorry, but I was not expecting you to be here. I don't think this is something I should discuss in front of people I do not trust absolutely. If you don't mind, I would like to take Elissa, Alistair, and Zevran to a more secure location to talk. You can remain within sight, but not hearing range," Leliana said to the Weisshaupt Wardens.

"Of course!" Brayden said quickly. He appeared to be slightly enamored with Leliana. Castille glared at him and gave him a smack to the back of the head, but it seemed to be only to show who was in charge since she did not disagree with him.

When they reached the other side of the square Leliana looked back to make sure that the Weisshaupt Wardens were too far away to hear. After checking this, she began to speak. "I have a mage who will put a ward around us to prevent Rhianth from using any magic to listen in on us, so we should be secure here. I believe that Morrigan has set up a camp in the forest outside the city. Many people have seen someone fitting her description just outside the walls and at the market. I've taken precautions to make sure that she has to remain here longer than she would like." A small smile formed on Leliana's face as she said the last part.

"Leliana, what types of precautions might those be?" Elissa asked warily.

"Nothing too serious. Some agents of mine have been stealing her food. I have a mage that's been sapping her mana so she stays weak and is less likely to travel," Leliana replied innocently.

"That's all?" Elissa's tone was skeptical.

"Well, I may be slowly supplementing her wardrobe with clothes that I think would look better on her…"

"Leliana! That could give you away!"

"Oh relax, Elissa. I made sure she wouldn't be able to leave before I started doing that."

"If you say so," Elissa grumbled, adding, "We should go seek her out immediately. I don't want to risk losing her."

"Relax. My agents tell me that she will need to buy food soon, so we'll be going to the market in the morning. She will most likely be looking for me due to my gifts," Leliana giggled.

"Fine," Elissa huffed, slightly upset that she would have to wait even longer to finally find Morrigan. "We'll wait until morning."


End file.
